THE CHALLENGE

In June of 1999 our Walkers hiked fifty miles around the Ards Peninsula and, thanks to the support of fellow parishioners and friends, took £3,000 off our bank loan. Two years later, three of our members were smitten again with the urge to succeed and, spured on by the need to raise funds for urgent repairs to the Church Organ, attempted to beat their previous record by a further 20 miles. This time their route took them on a round trip through the County Down towns and villages of Comber, Ballygowan, Saintfield, Downpatrick, Killyleagh, Killinchy and Lisbane. Not only was the physical stamina of our intrepid trio tested during the 5 days of THE CHALLENGE, so too were their minds as they had to answer numerous questions and riddles about the areas through which they were walking.

Day 1 - Monday

The Striders assembled at the Rectory, where they were met by several well-wishers who presented them with "goodies" like giant-size Mars Bars, other edibles, and blister plasters. There was an exciting atmosphere - a bit like the British Lions leaving to go to the other side of the world to play the All-Blacks! Then after a quick photo session we were on our way through Tullycarnet to the King's Road and on to Comber. The weather was perfect - bright sunshine, hot enough but not too hot, and not a drop of rain all day!

We set a steady pace and made it to Comber quite quickly, managing a wave to a parishioner's daughter-in-law, who made us aware of her presence as we passed Peartree Hill. For our first break we sat under the Gillespie Memorial in Comber's main square and nibbled our sandwiches for an early lunch. Here we discussed the ability of red-headed people to remain young looking, even when old, quoting an example of a man who had been known to one Strider and another Strider's father, and the first Strider's now deceased father, when they were young. (Don't worry if you can't follow this bit, you need a Degree in Rambling to do so!)

Ascending to the summit of High Street, we met a local man who told us all we wanted to know about Thomas Andrews' Mill and of all the land round about which Mr Andrews (of Titanic fame) had owned. We then proceeded to Ballygowan along the old road - better scenery and less traffic than the main route - and arrived in the village with faces lightly fried by the sun. We considered calling in on a parishioner who lives there, but since we hadn't warned her in advance, thought better of it and made a quick stop for iced-lollypops instead. After an amusing observation of how the locals park their cars outside the newsagent's shop, we continued on our way.

A lot of complaining took place in the early stages of the day, not about the walk of course, but about almost everything else! Conversation subjects jumped about quite considerably, and included the Mourne Mountains, with special reference to Ben Crom (which, for the unenlightened, is a mountain, not a man). The old Belfast to Heysham ferries got a special mention, and the fact that one's car had to be hauled on board by a crane.

The subject of motor cars is always a favourite topic of conversation for the Striders, and of course it came up on this occasion. The writer believes that one member had certainly done his homework this time round - he left the others speechless with his knowledge of cars and their drivers. Had he been surfing the Internet or could this new enthusiasm have been brought on by the fact that he had recently past his driving test ? This led to an examination of the degree of tolerance displayed by Striders' fathers (dead and alive) when their sons put scratches on their cars; the results were interesting. The track-bed of the old Belfast and County Down Railway was pointed out on several occasions, as was a highly-recommended nursery, and before long we reached the outskirts of Saintfield, which was our stopping point for day one. Physical difficulties included a few blisters and stiff leg muscles - but nothing that couldn't be handled. We had made a good start, and were pleased with our progress.

Day 2 - Tuesday

The weather was foul as the Striders set off through the site of the Battle of Saintfield (part of the 1798 Rebellion) and on through the town. One of the Strider's ancestors had lived in the town for many generations, and he was well clued-up on things there, so the members got a running commentary on every building and every blade of grass, whether they wanted it or not! As we left the town and headed in the direction of Listooder, the rain came on full pelt; the wind was fierce, and always seemed to be against us, no matter what direction we were facing. However, we braved the elements as best we could, and received great comfort from wolfing down some cereal bars given to us by a well-wisher.

As on the Monday, the track site of the Belfast and County Down Railway was never very far from us, and we soon spotted the remains of the old Ballynahinch Junction below us as we crossed a road bridge. The scenery around this area is fantastic - a mass of drumlins interspersed with lakes and bogland as well as good fertile grazing land. The discovery of several dry stone walls later enthused one member to try to build one in front of his house!

For a while the talk centred around computer games, and one member promised a copy of "Lemmings" to another who had lost his copy many years ago. Other topics included burglar alarms, broken noses and the difficulty of breathing with them. We also heard the hilarious account of how a certain Strider accidentally allowed his laptop computer to play a Budweiser screensaver (complete with sound) in the middle of the reading room of the Bodlian Library in Oxford ! While sheltering under a tree, one member received a crack on the shoulder by what felt and sounded like half of the tree, but was in fact a very big chestnut.

A strider who desired a Victorian bath for his house was shown a discarded, very ancient one in a nearby field, which looked as though it must have been used at some time as a feeding trough for the local pigs. Thankfully, it wasn't Victorian, so we were able to leave it where it was.

One strider amazed the others by declaring that he was carrying too much weight - the strider in question is like a beanpole and is easily the fittest person in the group. He tried the "pinch an inch" test, and eventually succeeded in pinching about one-eighth-of-an-inch of "flab" - this included his T-shirt! Luckily, the other members were not asked to perform the same test. As we finished for the day, heated debate took place about various "laws" and theories, including that of relativity (with particular reference to throwing balls in trains and jumping up and down in lifts). One member was overcome with the desire for a decent cup of hot tea, and was amply rewarded upon our return to Belfast (as were the others) with more than one cup from a good neighbour, as well as hot scones and lovely swiss roll !